Home Is Where the Art Is

A Marrickville warehouse is home to Yenti Home and Design, Sydney’s newest creative oasis.

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Published on 13 August 2014

by Nicola Heath

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Yenti Home and Design is a boutique label selling soft furnishings for adults, kids and pets by local designer Zane Kovac.

A rarity in an era dominated by mass-production and globalisation, Yenti’s cushions, bean bags and pet beds are designed and made in-house at a workshop in Marrickville.

“We’re lucky we can make all our products under the one roof, from cutting to screen printing to assembling,” says Kovac.

Yenti’s soft furnishings use premium linen and cotton, and cushion inserts are made from 100 per cent recycled PET bottles. But what elevates the pieces to collectors’ items is the focus on design.

Collections include Scandinavian and Kamikaze. The Nautical collection features patterns of waves, grids and classic stripes in traditional seafaring hues of blue, red and white. The Shibori range is Yenti’s interpretation of the traditional Japanese tie-dying technique.

The kids’ range includes simple patterns of polka dots and hand-drawn lines and child-friendly illustrations of fruit, animals and ice-cream.

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Artist Marty Baptist, who has previously collaborated with Oakley, has contributed designs for the first guest series.

Kovac says he has always been a big fan of Baptist’s work. “I have been closely following his progression over the years as a artist and thought bringing his artworks to our label just felt right and that it suits Yenti perfectly.”

While the Yenti-designed products are screen-printed by hand in the Sydney warehouse, a unique printing method is used to print pieces by guest artists to preserve details such as individual brushstrokes.

Another collaboration with an as-yet-unnamed guest artist is planned for summer.

For Kovac, design inspiration flows from everyday life, which for most of the Yenti team is populated by kids and pets.

“We design something that we want to see our children or dogs lounging on,” he says. “We do have a great time creating our ranges and products.